Changes
by Sull89
Summary: At Seattle Grace, nothing ever stays the same. This series of drabbles shows how people, places, and things have somehow, even though all the hardship, managed to grow.
1. Hunter

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 1_

**Fandom:** Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s):** Cristina/Preston  
**Song:** "Hunter," by Dido

**Song Excerpt:**  
If you were a king up there on your throne,  
Would you be wise enough to let me go?  
For this queen you think you own…

Wants to be a Hunter again.  
I want to see the world alone again,  
to take a chance on life again,  
So let me go.

**Drabble:**  
Preston Burke was a man of unimaginable talent; he had the steadiest hands, the steadiest eyes, and the steadiest mind of anyone she have ever known. He was the very personification of perfect in everything he did, from open heart surgery in the operating room at Seattle Grace to lovemaking between the sheets of the bed they shared in his small apartment.  
But as is to be expected from a creature of such perfection, he wanted perfection in return. As the king of cardiothoracic surgery and, at least as far as he knew, Cristina Yang's heart, he expected a lot from her, probably even more than he realized. Christina did her best to please him, but for a woman like her, who had never needed a man to validate her or make her happy, sometimes living the life he wanted for the both of them was almost too much to take.

Cristina had asked herself, from time to time, if what Preston wanted for her was really what she wanted for herself. She wasn't one for marriage and they both knew it, yet he pressed her to have the ceremony anyway. It seemed as though he was always pressing her to do one thing, or do another, even if she didn't want to or didn't see a reason too, and slowly she began to feel as though Preston believed he was in control of her just as he was everything else in her life.

She had thought of escaping, of turning her back and running, getting away to her freedom, but every time she made as though to act on it, he kept pulling her back, ensnaring her in her feelings and his pretty words. She began to wonder if he would ever let her go, if she managed to make it clear to both herself and him that being let go was what she actually wanted.

She had always wondered, but never moved to figure out the truth. But then the day came when he walked back down the aisle and left her there alone, clad in a white wedding dress with shock in her eyes, and then she knew. He let her go, knowing that she couldn't love him in the way he wanted to be loved, and left her to face the world alone once more.

And maybe, just maybe, she really wanted that chance.

* * *

This is the first Grey's Anatomy story in my song-themed 30 Day Drabble Challenge, which, unsurprisingly enough, was a drabble a day for thirty days. Not all 30 Days were Grey's Anatomy stories, which is why the numbering on the drabbles isn't consecutive. But, please, just take them all as individual stories, enjoy them, and let me know what you think!


	2. Strength

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 6_

**Fandom:** Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s):** Isobel Stevens  
**Song: **"Nobody's Listening," by Linkin Park

**Song Excerpt:**  
But in the meantime there are those who wanna  
Talk this and that, so I suppose  
That it gets to a point where feelings gotta get hurt  
And get dirty with the people spreading the dirt

**Drabble:**  
Isobel Stevens was a lot of things: she was pretty, she was talented, she was funny, and she was astoundingly compassionate, to name but a few, but there was one thing that she was certainly not; an airheaded blonde with little to nothing in her mind but makeup, clothing, and men. So when the day came that Alex Karev attempted to make it seem like she was, Isobel was ready to prove the age old adage true, "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."

To the eyes of just about everyone, the pictures of "Bethany Whisper" that plastered the walls of the hospital showed many reasons to discredit the young intern and mark her as nothing more than an idiot chick with a bombshell body that got by on her looks, but to Isobel they reminded her of everyone from her past, those who always kept telling her the same thing, "You'll never go anywhere, you're nothing more than white trailer trash, destined to be a truck stop waitress for the rest of your life."

When rumors like that started to propagate again, this time with a decidedly different undertone but still the same basic message, she heard statements whispered behind her back in the halls and in the stalls of the women's bathrooms, and every time they cut her deep, "She must be such a slut, she didn't get through med school with her brains, she got through with her body. She'll fail as an intern within the first few months, hands down." 

Isobel was fuming by the time she figured out Karev was behind bringing her past back to her, but this time, she vowed, she wasn't going to just back down and let those people browbeat her, not at all; this time, she was going to fight for herself. Her feeling had been hurt for far too long, and people had doubted her without reason for most of her life, but now things were different, and she was going to stand up for what she knew about herself and what she believed it; people were going to stop spreading dirt about her, no matter what it took to make them do it.

For her whole life, Isobel had kept her mouth shut, letting herself be hurt to avoid hurting the feelings of others, but when she burst into that locker room and finally let Karev had what he had coming to him, she felt no remorse for doing it; she had enough of being the brunt of everyone's cruel jokes, and instead of cowering in the corner like she used to do, this time she was going to get dirty and save herself.


	3. Breakdown

30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 9

**Fandom:** Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s):** Addison Montgomery-Shepherd.  
**Song:**"Breakdown," by Breaking Benjamin 

**Song Excerpt:**  
What I found in this town  
I'm heading for a breakdown  
What's that sound, you're so loud  
I'm heading for a breakdown

**Drabble:**  
When Addison came to Seattle, she had expected a few things to happen: shock from Derek at seeing her, an ensuing argument or three, and then after some long conversations, a move back to New York with her husband and a trend toward everything becoming normal again. So, when she arrived in the wet city and snooped around a bit, everything she discovered floored her.

He had found another woman. Derek Shepherd, her brilliant neurosurgeon husband with the thick hair and warm eyes and the rich laugh, was sleeping with another woman! The fact that she had slept with Mark notwithstanding, didn't he hear her when she begged him not to do this, not to leave, not to get so upset without letting her explain; didn't he miss her even a little bit? But then she saw him there, standing with the slutty intern, smiling and laughing and being happy and dammit, that smiling, laughing happiness belonged to her!

It was then that she set her back in a resolute line and strode forward, intent to take her husband back and reclaim everything about him she loved in the first place; slutty intern notwithstanding. As she stood there, smirking at the look of shock covering both their faces as she deliver her stinging, "And you must be the woman who's been screwing my husband," line, Addison was sure that everything was going to go her way, and it felt good. 

But now, here they were, who knows how many months later, and all the marriage councilors and hand holding in the world somehow couldn't manage to repair their relationship. Derek was insistent that he couldn't stop talking to Meredith (the slutty intern had a name, now) because he worked with her, and Addison was sure that was just a farce. 

Skip forward for a while longer, and suddenly Addison is certain that Seattle is going to be the death of her. Everything she knew, everything that she loved, everything that was her life for eleven years is now suddenly just gone, banished by an act of carnal affection, never to return to her. It was bad enough that everything was collapsing around her, but the fact that her now ex-husband has to be so damned vocal about it isn't helping either. He'd been at her since day one, always talking, always accusing her of something, always blaming it on her, and by now she was so sick of it that she would have given anything to make it end. 

Everyone, everything, Derek, Meredith, the smiles, the laughs, the panties in his pocket, it was all just so loud, and Addison needed some quiet. She just needed some peace and quiet. That was all she wanted. So when she got in her cherry red convertible and finally headed down the highway, leaving the screaming accusations and accusatory looked behind, she felt something within her start to weave itself back together. Hopefully, in Los Angeles, things will stay that way, and the new city won't break her down like the last one did. 


	4. What Is Real

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 15_

**Fandom: **Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s): **Cristina/Izzy  
**Song: **"You've Got The Music In You," by New Radicals

**Song Excerpt:**  
Fly high  
What's real can't die  
You only get what you give  
You're gonna get what you give  
Just don't be afraid to live

**Drabble:**  
The discovery that an accidental touch and a shared smile sent fire through their bodies shocked both women; finding such pleasure in another female was something neither one had ever even entertained the notion of before, yet slowly and surely it was happening now. It was Izzy who wondered first, what the thrill she got from seeing and being with Cristina really meant, but it didn't take the black haired resident's mind long to follow suite in regards to Izzy.

When they both realized that they felt something more for the other than just the love of friends, it came as no surprise to those few who knew of their feelings (Meredith on Cristina's side, and George on Izzy's) that they decided to act on it; Yang was known for getting what she wanted, when she wanted it and Izzy was renowned for being one of the most stubborn people in the hospital.

When the day came that they shared their first tentative kiss in the locker room at Seattle Grace, it was with soft smiles on both their faces that they spoke of internal feelings and the pang of scared confusion that comes with realizing you've fallen for one of the same sex. A long night followed, sitting together and discussing anything that came to mind and as the midnight hour fell and Izzy reached out to take Cristina's hand in hers, she couldn't help but be happy that she was strong enough to admit these feelings.

After all; she had always told herself never to be afraid of flying high and Cristina had said more than once that you're only going to get what you give, so you had to live life to the fullest no matter what. Izzy laughed softly then, as the thought went through her mind and Cristina squeezed her hand slightly, "What's real won't ever die…"


	5. Lost Heaven

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 17_

**Fandom: **Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s): **Addison  
**Song: **"Lost Heaven," by L'ArcEnCiel

**Song Excerpt:**

I reached out my hand to grab my dream; a softly crumbling castle of sand.  
We just stood stock still at the street where we parted; leaving behind a smile.  
It just disappeared - the paradise you painted.  
We'll say goodbye, lost heaven.

**Drabble:**

The day her divorce from Derrick went through, Addison couldn't decide exactly how she felt. Part of her just wanted to be happy that everything was finally over, but the other half felt like breaking down and crying; eleven years of her life were suddenly just gone. All with two simple signatures, her past was wiped away without any ceremony.

She had tried to hold on to it and to him; after all, that's why she went to Seattle in the first place. Addison did everything she could to make Derrick stay with her, did everything she could to show him how sorry she was, and for a while it seemed like it might work, but that damned intern… Meredith made everything so much harder.

But it seemed like the more she grabbed at her dream, the more it crumbled under her fingers like a deteriorating sand castle. When the end finally came, all she could do was watch as he walked away, the last smile she would ever get from him left behind and replaced with an angry scowl. As he vanished from sight, it was all Addison could do to stay on her feet as the paradise they had created finally disappeared completely.

With a few tears in her eyes, she turned away, silently saying goodbye to the only heaven she thought she'd ever have.


	6. Before the Dawn

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 22  
_

**Fandom: **Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s): **Addison/Meredith  
**Song: **"Before the Dawn," by Evanescence

**Song Excerpt:**  
Somehow I know that we can't wake again from this dream  
It's not real, but it's ours.

**Drabble:**  
Addison knew, as she lay in bed next to the one woman everyone thought she hated, that what they had just shared could never be spoken of outside the walls of this hotel room. It might not even get talked of at all; after all, Meredith was half in the bag when she accosted her at the bar earlier that night and might not even have realized what was going on as she lay tangled in the sheets with her head between Addison's thighs.

It was a dream, what had just gone on between them, and the red haired attending knew that. It was true, she had been married and she had loved Derrick with all her heart, but there was something about sharing a bed with another woman that warmed her inside and out. Maybe it was the fact that there were more gentle caresses or fingers and tongues, or how smooth Meredith's skin had been against hers, but something about it made everything so surreal and wonderful.

Knowing that when Meredith woke up that her dream would suddenly be shattered, Addison sighed and rolled over, watching the younger woman as she slept, worn out after a night of sensual touches and hard kisses, thinking about what would happen when the young intern did realize what had happened.

When she did, Addison knew that what had happened this night would never have a chance of happening again, but for now, while she still lay sleeping, her boss could dream that it would; she knew it wasn't real, but it was hers.


	7. One Step Closer

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 23_

**Fandom: **Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s): **Meredith  
**Song: **"One Step Closer," by Linkin Park

**Song Excerpt:**  
I need a little room to breathe  
Cause I'm one step closer to the edge  
And I'm about to break

**Drabble:**  
When Addison showed up, Meredith was shocked.  
When Addison stayed, Meredith was lost.  
When Addison was the chosen one, Meredith was crushed.

One more step, and Meredith would break.


	8. Do It For Yourself

_30 Day SongFic Drabble Challenge: Day 28_

**Fandom: **Grey's Anatomy  
**Pairing/Character(s): **Meredith and Ellis  
**Song: **"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything For You," by Stevie Nicks

**Song Excerpt:**  
So, if not for me, then  
Do it for yourself  
If not for me then  
Do it for the world

**Drabble:**  
Meredith hadn't wanted to be a surgeon, not at first. She had dreams of other things, different things; in her mind, better things. Her mother, on the other hand, was insistent; she had to become a doctor, she had to because it was her mother's legacy living on, she had to because it would give her a stable income, she had to because it was what her mother wanted.

It was always what her mother wanted and with the exception of Richard, Ellis Grey always did get what it was she wanted. Meredith fought hard though, saying that it was her own life and she had the right to do whatever she wanted with it, but her mother would be damned before she saw her daughter enter a different profession.

Their fights went on for a long time, but finally, one night Meredith did give in. For the first time in years her mother sat her down and had a real, genuine talk with her; one that didn't involve yelling or screaming. She softly told Meredith that she was smart enough to become a surgeon if she would only try and that she would be saving lives and helping families if she did.

The words that came out of her mother's mouth were ones that Meredith had never expected to hear; her mother was telling her to do it not because it was what she wanted, but because it was something that would give Meredith fulfillment; for the first time in her life, Meredith heard her mom tell her to do something for herself.

Softly, Ellis, the mother who had never been that great of a mother, reached out and took her young daughter's hands in her own, "If not for me, Meredith, then do it for yourself; do it for the world." Stroking the skin on the back of Meredith's hand gently, Ellis then said, "The world needs people to take care of it; you can be one of those people. Do it for them, and do it for yourself."

Suddenly, Meredith realized that her mom was right; the world needed people to take care of it and she had the brains to be one of those people. The next day, she went out and changed her major to pre-med.


End file.
